The Global Cryosphere Watch

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CryoNet Asia 1st Workshop(Beijing, China, 2-5 December 2013)

1st CryoNet South America Workshop(Santiago, Chile, 27-29 October, 2014)

Lessons Learned – or Not

Barry Goodison,Vice-Chair, GCW Steering Group

Purpose of Asia CryoNet Workshop

To continue efforts in implementing CryoNet and addressing identified gaps, with an emphasis on the measurement sites, observations, and issues in Asia. This included, but was not limited to, the “Third Pole Project” region of the Himalayas

Presentations are available: http://www.wmo.int/pages/prog/www/OSY/Meetings/GCW-CN-Asia/CryoNet_Asia_Documentation_Plan.html

Final report of workshop: http://www.wmo.int/pages/prog/www/OSY/Meetings/GCW-CN-SouthAmerica/CryoNet_Asia_FinalReport.doc

Purpose of CryoNet South America Workshop

To identify stations/sites that could be selected for CryoNet in South America, discuss practices that should be applied and to foster the development of cryospheric activities in the region

Review of environmental regulations related to glaciers and the periglacial environment within the different countries represented in the Workshop, a topic of particular relevance to Chile in view of the glacier law initiative currently being discussed in Congress.

Presentations are available:http://www.wmo.int/pages/prog/www/OSY/Meetings/GCW-CN-SouthAmerica/CryoNet_SoutAmerica_DocPlan.html

Draft Final report of workshop: http://www.wmo.int/pages/prog/www/OSY/Meetings/GCW-CNT2/GCW-CNT2-PT-2.html

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CryoNet Asia -BackgroundParticipants: from China, Pakistan, India, Japan, Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan,

Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, USA, Canada, Austria, Italy, and Switzerland.

Meeting Language: English only

Feedback with respect to cryospheric observation and monitoring: For CryoNet, establishment of a tiered network was ranked as the highest

priority High need for harmonization as well as standards and guidelines in

cryospheric observations Existing cryospheric networks are highly interested in cooperation with

GCW CryoNet should fill gaps in existing networks For the cryospheric community, data policy and data accessibility is of

highest priority Participants helped refine the CryoNet network strategy, levels of observation,

requirements for site inclusion in the network, and measurement practices.

General and site questionnaires were completed by participants.

CryoNet South America -Background

Participants: from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Austria, Canada, France, Iceland, Switzerland, USA – strong co-operation among SA/LA countries already which strengthened discussion

Meeting Languages: English and Spanish, with excellent simultaneous interpretation; questionnaire offered in Spanish; final report summary in English and Spanish (special thanks for arrangements by Chile)

Feedback with respect to cryospheric observation and monitoring: Implementation of tiered network High need for standards and guidelines in cryospheric observations

(many counts) Serve science and practitioners Cooperate with existing networks Fill gaps in existing networks Data policy and data provision

General and site questionnaires were completed by participants.

Asia Workshop Presentations and Discussion

Potential GCW and CryoNet sites presented and discussed; updated site questionnaires submitted for further review and discussion;

High Elevation stations in Central Asia were the focus of most participants; several Chinese stations were proposed to be part into CryoNet Asia; Reviewed existing observation sites/observatories over the “Third Pole”

region. Achievements and gaps in observations were identified. Need to pursue continuous support and upgrade for observations in Third

Pole region toward the GCW standard. Defined the boundary of Asia CryoNet - will not limited to “Third Pole” only,

but whole Asia except Arctic; Asia CryoNet will be in coinciding spatially with WMO Region II.

BUT, the following actions have not been followed up: Set up guidelines on how Asia CryoNet to be organized. Need to complete list of focal points (station leaders) for stations/sites, Highlight the importance of GCW to the responsible bodies in China, like

CAS and CMA

Responsibilities were not explicitly assigned at the meeting

SA Workshop Presentations and Discussion

Should we focus on the Andes as one region, or by three climate zones – tropical, dry, and wet Andes?

No clear agreement on this question as several participants thought that this region should be considered as a whole while many others asked to distinguish inner and outer tropics areas

Discussion on regional vs national data centres - meeting opted in favor of small data centre as some centres already exist; noted by D/OBS that coordination on national level is more important and we should stay with the WMO definition for regional centres; in future GCW could offer a “data centre” (e.g. Met Norway) for data that are not stored anywhere else.

Meeting agreed that at least metadata should be made freely available; some networks are financed by third countries and these data are made available first to that entity, and as a second step made available to others. GCW can also access the data; Chile emphasized that there should be no issue with sharing Chilean data –open data policy

The need for adequate cryospheric definitions was stressed in view of their legal implications.

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SA Workshop Presentations and Discussion

Should Antarctic stations/sites operated by South American countries be part of South American CryoNet or Antarctic CryoNet?

participants agreed that Antarctica should be treated separately from CryoNet South America since it is a completely distinct region from a geographic point of view and also because several countries outside South America are involved

Is Mexico part of this region or part of North American region? CryoNet is not building a rigid regional network and Mexico may be included

in CryoNet South America; impacts of Mexican glaciers should be assessed in comparison with the rest of the South American cryosphere.

Is South American boundary equivalent to WMO RA II countries (like Asia)? The meeting reaffirmed that no regional networks are planned.

There was extensive discussion of the stations presented for consideration as CryoNet stations and new questionnaires were requested

It was agreed that snowpack chemistry should be included in GCW/CryoNet IP

Key Outcomes/Actions

To build CryoNet Asia: First step is to draft the site classification system and then try to assign

sites submitted by participants to test its applicability. Develop a data exchange mechanism, Compile appropriate best practices, guidelines, and standards currently

being used by different agencies, organizations Identify and pursue funding opportunities. As CryoNet sites would be

operated by national entities, it is important to start the dialogue with national ministries to seek commitments to operate these sites.

GCW Asia CryoNet will follow WMO’s resolution on data policies and data sharing

Asia CryoNet representative on GCW CryoNet

Key Outcomes/ActionsTo build CryoNet South(Latin) America:1. There is high interest in the region to contribute to the CryoNet initiative.2. National Representatives of CryoNet South America will be initially selected

among the invited participants, in coordination with the national IACS correspondents.

3. Gino Casassa, National Representative for Chile, will follow up on item 2.4. Each National Representative will contact the respective agencies, institutions

and colleagues to remind them to complete the site questionnaire before 25 November 2014.

5. A Regional Group will be formed by consensus from the National Representatives.

6. Mexico will be included in the group, and the name CryoNet Latin America will be proposed.

7. Potential collaboration with the Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) regional section of the International Hydrological Programme (IHP) of UNESCO will be proposed to the Snow and Ice Working Group of LAC.

8. A 2nd South America meeting is proposed to be held in the 2nd half of 2015.9. The Regional Group will follow up on items 6, 7 and 8.

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Nominated National Representatives for Latin America

MEXICO: Hugo Delgado, Universidad Nacional de México (UNAM)COLOMBIA: Jorge Luis Ceballos, Instituto de Hidrología, Meteorología y Estudios

Ambientales (IDEAM)ECUADOR: Bolívar Cáceres, Instituto Nacional de Meteorología e Hidrología

(INAMHI)PERU: Luzmila Dávila Roller, Unidad de Glaciología y Recursos Hídricos de la

Autoridad Nacional del Agua (UGRH-ANA) y Wilson Suárez, Servicio Nacional de Meteorología e Hidrología (SENAMHI)

BOLIVIA: Alvaro Soruco, Instituto de Investigaciones Geológicas y del Medio Ambiente (IGEMA), Universidad Mayor de San Andrés (UMSA)

ARGENTINA: Darío Trombotto, Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales (IANIGLA)

CHILE: Gino Casassa, Geoestudios & Universidad de Magallanes (UMAG)

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Thoughts from Xiao CundeCryoNet should be set up step by step; it would be good to have a model

station, guided by GCW standards, in Asia, South America, and elsewhere.

Because of the harsh condition of cryosphere region, having this kind of station is not always an easy task. To save man-power and make the station more accessible, it is smart to choose a relatively easier site or longer history (good background) station at our initial stage.

New and high-level technologies for data saving and transmitting should be encouraged and introduced to these stations. “If people can receive data comfortably at home/office sent by satellite and don't need to visit the cold and high-altitude sites very often to take care of the instruments and retrieve data, I believe CryoNet will soon become very bloom around all cryospheric regions”.

WMO should seek innovative techniques, including training at a model station, while being very patient.

 After establishing a standard station, then we should discuss more in detail about agreements, rules/regulations, management (gobally) for CryoNet or GCW, and these will become much easier than what we can do today.

Moving Forward.....

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